Search

Objective: Educational program evaluation and program improvement are processes that can be enhanced by involving multiple stakeholders and measurement tools. The purpose of this study was to compare faculty and resident physician perceptions of both teaching quality and resident competence for 13 core psychiatric skills and the six Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education general competencies. Additionally, resident performance as assessed by portfolios was descriptively examined relative to these perceptions of skills and competencies. Using this combination of data, the authors propose a useful approach for identifying areas for improvement within a medical residency's program curriculum. Methods: Ten teaching faculty members (100%) and 18 residents (82%) within a psychiatry department completed parallel surveys. Trained raters scored resident-completed portfolio entries. Nonparametric and descriptive analyses were used to compare the various data sources. Results: In general, faculty and residents showed congruence in their perceptions about resident performance. They agreed on the quality of teaching skills and general competencies. General competency scores from the portfolios were congruent with this perspective. However, there were mismatches in perceptions and performance on portfolios for some areas. Of the 13 core psychiatric skills examined, only one area, neuropsychiatry, was rated below average by both faculty and residents, while the median portfolio performance score was below competent for four skills, including neuropsychiatry. Faculty rated resident competence significantly higher than residents rated themselves for biopsychosocial formulation and medical psychiatry. Conclusion: This study describes and highlights the usefulness of a multidimensional approach that includes resident and faculty perspectives and externally rated performance measures to assist in identifying potential target areas for curriculum improvement.

Objective: Few data exist on the topic of internal hiring of trainees in academic medicine. This study examines nationally representative data to determine the frequency of faculty psychiatrists who are employed in the same department in which they completed their residency training. Method: Estimates of internal faculty hiring were obtained by reviewing a random sample of publically available psychiatry department websites in the United States. Results: Among the 26 departments reviewed, there was wide variation in the rates of psychiatrists who received training in the same department in which they were currently employed as faculty members, with a median of 45.5%, ranging from 0% to 71%. Conclusion: Results suggest that departmental hiring of one's own graduates is common practice in academic psychiatry, and there is wide variation in this practice across psychiatry departments in the United States. (Contains 1 table.)

The Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) has demonstrated good psychometric properties among respondents in many different countries, but minimal research exists using the CBI in a U.S.-based sample. The current study represents a secondary analysis of existing CBI data from 1,679 academic health center employees at one mid-size teaching hospital in the southeastern region of the U.S. Analyses assessed CBI scale reliability, confirmatory factorial validity, discriminant validity against a measure of meaningful work, and test invariance for professional role sub-groups (physicians, nurses/physician assistants, and other hospital staff), gender groups, and different age groups. Results provided evidence for good reliability and discriminant validity as well as construct validity supporting the CBI proposed three-factor structure. Configural and metric variance equivalence were demonstrated across the range of employee types, and across age and gender groups. Scalar invariance equivalence was not established, suggesting further research may be needed to support group mean comparisons using the CBI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used the 2011 Arkansas Youth Risk Behavior Survey to estimate the prevalence of risky sexual behavior and sexual assault and to measure its association with teen suicidality. In Arkansas, 50.3% of students reported ever having sexual intercourse, 26% onset at 14 or younger, 36 % having had more than one partner, and 10.2% having been physically forced to have sex. "Being forced to have sex" was a risk factor for depression and all components of the suicide continuum. Additionally, early onset of sexual activity and having more than one partner increased the risk for depression, suicidal ideation, plan, and attempt. Suicide is a grievous and preventable tragedy, sadly standing among the leading causes of death for teens.' In this series, we examine risk factors for suicidality among Arkansas high school students; in this installment, we examine sexual behavior. A previous study utilizing the Rhode Island Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) found an association between having forced sexual intercourse and suicide. Furthermore, an association between psychiatric disorders and risky sexual behaviors, including both early onset and number of partners was found in a birth cohort study revealed. We hypothesize that Arkansas' teens reporting risky sexual behavior and sexual assault are at higher risk of depression and suicidality as well.